Texas wins Rose Bowl on last-second field goal

Young accounts for five scores as Longhorns win on Mangum's FG

Published 6:30 am, Sunday, January 2, 2005

PASADENA, CALIF. - The Rose Bowl does it like no other, but it never has been done quite like this.

Texas arrived unwanted and unwelcome yet unwavering in its belief it belongs among the nation's premier football teams.

The Longhorns leave Southern California having participated in one of the most memorable Rose Bowls and the first of the 91 games to be decided by a score on the final play.

In a game that delivered a wilder ride than any Disneyland has to offer, the Longhorns overcame a 10-point fourth-quarter deficit to topple Michigan 38-37 on Saturday on a chilly, overcast afternoon before a frenzied crowd of 93,468.

The Rose Bowl rookies invaded the "Granddaddy" of all bowls for the first time and did it Texas style — big and spectacular, with about 60 percent of the fans decked out in burnt orange.

"The game was fabulous," Rose Bowl CEO Mitch Dorger said. "It was one of the most amazing Rose Bowls I've ever seen."

Longhorns fans might have a difficult time deciding whether to salute the legs of quarterback Vince Young, who rushed for a bowl record-tying four touchdowns, or worship at the right foot of Dusty Mangum, who booted a game-winning 37-yard field goal as time expired.

"It was a Hollywood ending and what better place for that than the Rose Bowl?" Texas senior tight end Bo Scaife said.

With the victory in its first matchup against Michigan, the all-time winningest college football program, sixth-ranked Texas (11-1) gave coach Mack Brown his first major bowl victory and dispelled some of the controversy over whether the Longhorns were Bowl Championship Series worthy.

"This ought to quiet the critics," Texas linebacker Derrick Johnson said. "Everybody should see that coach Brown is a great coach and that we are one of the best teams in the country."

Texas scored 17 points in a frantic fourth quarter that featured three lead changes in the final five minutes.

Young, who rushed for 192 yards on 21 carries and completed 16 of 28 attempts for 180 yards, again worked his come-from-behind magic. UT overcame halftime deficits in its last three games of the regular season.

This time, on the biggest stage of his career, Young, a Madison product, responded by accounting for five touchdowns, matching the record set by Neil Snow of Michigan in the first Rose Bowl, 103 years ago.

"There was no panic," Young said. "We've been down way more than that before. Every time they hit us in the mouth, we'd turn around and hit them in the mouth."

UT, which took a 21-14 lead early in the third quarter on a brilliant 60-yard sprint by Young, allowed Michigan to score 17 unanswered points to build a 10-point edge by period's end.

Dodds said Texas is able to afford the additional pay increases in part because of revenue from the Rose Bowl appearance.

On top of the funds guaranteed through the BCS formula, he said Big 12 Conference rules allow a school to keep half the price of each ticket sold after it sells half of its bowl allotment.

Because Texas sold 26,000 tickets, surpassing its allotment of 20,000 at $125 each, it will receive an additional $1 million from that source.

Scare for Benson

UT tailback
Cedric Benson
, expected to be among the first 15 picks in the NFL draft, had a scare early in the game.

The senior from Midland hyperextended his knee attempting to make a cut on UT's first play from scrimmage. He limped off the field and appeared to be injured but returned two plays later.

"I was fine," said Benson, who rushed for a season-low 70 yards on 23 carries. "It was scary at first, but I didn't think it was a major injury."

Record afternoon

This was the 91st Rose Bowl, but Michigan and Texas contributed more than their share of record-breaking performances:

•With four touchdown runs and a scoring pass, quarterback Vince Young of Texas became the first player since Neil Snow of Michigan in 1902 — the year of the inaugural Rose Bowl — to account for five TDs in a game.
• Steve Breaston of Michigan had 221 kick return yards, breaking the mark of 178 by UCLA's Al Hoisch in 1947. His 315 all-purpose yards broke the record of 276 set by O.J. Simpson against Ohio State in 1969.
•Young's 372 total yards was fourth best in Rose Bowl history, and Michigan receiver Braylon Edwards' 10 receptions gave him 20 in two Rose Bowls, a career record for the game.
•Edwards' three TD catches gave him 39 for his career, breaking the school/Big Ten record of 37 by Anthony Carter.
•And Young became the first Texas player to rush and pass for a thousand yards in the same season, with 1,079 yards rushing and 1,849 passing.

Any more questions?

Texas coach
Mack Brown
was still answering questions about the Bowl Championship Series selection process after the game, and he was quick to deflect the questions in the proper direction.

"The BCS should be answering those instead of me," Brown said. "There should be questions about Utah and Louisville, and there should have been questions the last three years about why Texas didn't get in.

"California (which was bumped from the BCS by Texas after the regular-season finale) has a great team and deserved to be in the BCS, but I don't think anybody who knows football has any question that Texas should be there."

Fantastic finishes

Dusty Mangum
's game-winning field goal marked the third time a Rose Bowl has been decided by a field goal in the final 20 seconds.

This is the fourth time Texas has won a game on the final play of regulation. Kris Stockton kicked an 18-yard field goal in a 44-41 win over Iowa State in 1999, Phil Dawson nailed a 50-yarder to beat Virginia 17-16 in 1995 and Tony Jones beat Arkansas 15-14 with an 18-yard TD catch from Bret Stafford in 1987.

Needy, not greedy

Texas offensive coordinator
Greg Davis
said he has watched QB
Vince Young
mature the past three seasons, and saw more evidence of that Saturday.

"I told Vince to be needy, not greedy," Davis said about the last drive. "Take care of the ball and we'd get it done. He's been there before."